7 Social Media Tips For Writers Who Want to Get Noticed

We don’t even think before reaching for our phones to check Facebook and Instagram. We catch ourselves scrolling through our feed or drafting the next clever tweet in our head.In a world so entrenched with social media, are we as writers living up to our full social potential? Or do we believe that we somehow can rise above social media and be successful without it? Freelance writers often miss key ways they can use social media to their benefit.

Social media is a gold mine of unlocked potential to build a following, showcase your writing ability and gain exposure. If you are a writer looking to get noticed or inspired, here areseven creative ways you can use social media to do so!

1. LinkedIn Pulse

This platform gives writers the chance to get original content noticed on LinkedIn by professionals.If you publish blog posts or articles, think along the same lines for Pulse. Articles can range from 500-word targeted posts to epic, 2,000+ word pieces.The good news? Republishing content from your blog in Pulse is by Google. However, I’d still recommend changing a few lines to speak directly to your LinkedIn audience.

2. Instagram quotes

Do you have a book? An ebook? Even a blog? If you’re a writer, you likely have at least one.Try using Instagram to showcase quotes from your written work. You can snag quotes and create simple, but beautiful, images. One of my favorite tools to create graphics is . There are hundreds of beautiful templates and layouts you can use to make your quotes stand out!

Be sure to think hard about your captions! Although Instagram is a visually-dominated social media platform, writers can make great use of the captions.

Reel those casual scrollers in with a beautiful image, and keep them there with your caption.

3. Your Instagram bio

As obvious as it sounds, every author, blogger, and writer needs a snappy Instagram bio to attract potential opportunities.

This is the #1 area of failure I see on Instagram.

Who are you? What are you interested in? What do you do? What do you like to do? You want to make your first impression for readers landing on your profile a positive one.A stellar bio includes your real name, a brief rundown of your skills, and your website link. Make sure you use your creative flair to set yourself apart. (This is why I love emojis!)

4. Twitter chats

Twitter, contrary to popular belief, is one of the most literary social media platforms today.

You have 140 characters to make your point. What could be more literary than that?Twitter Chats are a great way to network, influence and contribute. Many writing chats feature guest influencers and experts, giving you access to some big names to network with.

Topics range from book discussions (check out the popular #LitChat) to fiction writing support (I recommend #ScribeChat on Thursdays) to the benefits journaling (#JournalChat, also on Thursdays).Twitter chats are a creative way writers can use social media to connect with other writers, expand their sphere of influence, and share their knowledge.

5. Facebook writing groups

Facebook groups are yet another creative way writers can use social media to get noticed and inspired.

Joining a Facebook group aimed at writers is a fantastic way to meet and collaborate with other writers. You might even find your next writing gig!Facebook writing groups range from small and intimate, to enormous and robust. Topics and focus vary, but the main benefit remains the same: comradery with other writers.

The Write Life even has its own , filled with inspiring writers.

6. Facebook Instant Articles

Although Instant Articles isn’t quite , the platform still holds promise for writers.

Facebook Instant Articles receive and 30 percent more shares than other articles, according to a statistic from 2016..

Like Pulse, you can republish content on Facebook’s native platform without it being flagged as duplicate content.

Yet, unlike Pulse, Facebook has created several integrations that make publishing easy for writers. These integrations with content and blogging systems means there’s no need to recreate articles within Facebook.

7. Facebook “mini blog”

We all know that writers can use their Facebook pages or profiles to share blog posts.

But, what about “blogging” right on your Facebook newsfeed? Authors such as do exactly this.You can use Facebook not only to share content from other places, but to express your opinions about those pieces. Share your creative edge, your wit, your life. Your sphere of influence will expand simply from being transparent and generous with your writing!With these seven creative ways to use social media, let’s stop fighting social media and instead, embrace it. Let’s find more opportunities to get noticed and gain exposure for our work!Do you have other creative ideas for using social media? Let us know in the comments!

Vanessa Gillette is a creative digital marketer and professional writer committed to helping small businesses, entrepreneurs, and freelancers succeed. Grab more information about her writing services at , and follow her life and travels at nikandvanessatakethe.world.

22 comments

I love this! Thank you so much Vanessa for writing about this. I rely on FB, Twitter and LinkedIn to expose my writing, but am building my Instagram feed with the hopes that it will expand my audience.

You’re welcome, Mariana! If you’re a visual person, you will absolutely love Instagram. I get a fantastic creative release from curating my “grid”. Creative exercise and an effective marketing tool all in one? Sign me up! 🙂

Thanks! A great resource that I’ve now shared with my writing clients. I didn’t even know about FaceBook’s Instant Articles. It may have not fit what book publishers need, but it looks very functional for the ebook writers or blogger building an audience.

@ vanessa
A brilliant and researched piece of content this!
I’m sure to bookmark this. Though I have been writing for quite some time but was not hither to giving social media its due. But no more….
Thanks a lot

Hi Katie! It’s great that you’re getting started 🙂 Instagram and Facebook are extremely powerful for writers. Here are some tips that helped me:

1. For Instagram, use a tool like Planoly to plan out your “grid” in advance. To make your feed as visually compelling as possible, seeing how pictures will play off of each other is key. Try alternating simple quotes with busier images, or sticking to a color scheme. This will naturally attract more followers.

2. For Facebook, determine what kinds of pages and groups your ideal clients are likely to follow or be a part of. Be there, be active and engaging.

3. Similarly, on Instagram, I actively follow accounts that have both similar goals to my own, and that my ideal clients are likely to follow.

4. I can’t stress this one enough – sometimes you have to go back to basics. Make sure your profile image is clear and of your face, that you have an attention-grabbing cover image on Facebook, and that your bio sections are both filled out, compelling, and concisely descriptive.

Awesome! A wonderful article that I’ve now shared with my community. I didn’t even know about Facebook “mini blog”. It looks very functional for the writers or blogger building an audience. I really appreciate it. I definitely come back to gather more knowledge. Thanks for doing a great job here. Keep posting